Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is an annual parade held every Thanksgiving Day in New York City. Originally called the Macy's Christmas Parade, the parade was first held in 1924 and has been cancelled only twice due to rubber shortages during World War II. The parade features large balloons of well-known characters alongside floats and marching bands, ending with a float of Santa Claus upon his sleigh, marking the start of the Christmas season. Kermit the Frog balloon The first Kermit the Frog balloon debuted in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1977.Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade by Robert M. Grippo and Christopher Hoskins, Arcadia Publishing, 2005. The balloon was 63 feet tall and 24 feet wide, and took four hours and 5,220 cubic feet of helium to reach its full size. It was constructed at the Goodyear plant in Rockmart, Georgia."Balloons Over Broadway: Famous Frog Flies for Feast Fete", The Muppet Show Fan Club newsletter, vol 1, no 4. 1978. The Muppet cast made a live appearance in the 1979 Parade to promote The Muppet Movie. Miss Piggy rode the parade route in a Rolls Royce, followed by the rest of the Muppets in the Electric Mayhem bus."Kermit Celebrates International Year of the Child", The Muppet Show Fan Club newsletter, vol 2, no 2. 1979. Also in 1979, the Kermit balloon was the first inflatable from the parade to travel outside of the USA, heading to England to help celebrate the International Year of the Child. The 1985 parade was affected by heavy rain, which weighed down the balloons. The Kermit balloon ripped its stomach along Central Park West during the parade. With only about 20% of his helium inside the balloon, Kermit was carried for the rest of the parade by his green-clad frog handlers."Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade! 1985 & 1986", X-Entertainment.com. Thanksgiving 2003. In 1987, Jim Henson and Kermit appeared live on the telecast to accept the Rollie Award, an award named for Rowland H. Macy, for their years of service to the parade. Kermit graciously accepted the award, saying, "Listen, to be immortalized in a large balloon about 75 feet tall and filled with gas is one of the greatest thrills of my life, and I wish everybody out there could have the same exciting thrill. And it would be a wonderful parade if they did.""The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade! 1987 Edition!", X-Entertainment.com. November 24, 2004. The Kermit balloon suffered another mishap in 1991, when it scraped against high branches on Central Park West, tearing a hole in the balloon's head. "Sighs of Relief, Mostly, for High-Flying Stars in Parade", James Barron, The New York Times. November 29, 1991. After this incident, the Kermit balloon was retired from the Parade. "Clear, Cold & Kermit for Big Parade", Ralph R. Ortega and Tamer El-Ghobashy, New York Daily News. November 28, 2002. (The article actually claims that the balloon retired in 1990.) After an 11-year hiatus from the Parade, a new Kermit the Frog balloon debuted in 2002. The new balloon is 78 feet long, 61 feet high and 36 feet wide, with a volume of 11,000 cubic feet of helium. To mark the occasion, Kermit was the official holiday mascot for Macy's in 2002, and he rode on Santa's sleigh at the end of the parade. "[http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/2002/11/27/2002-11-27__peanuts__fave_leads_floatil.html Peanuts fave leads flotilla: Charlie Brown star of holiday parade]", Ralph R. Ortega, New York Daily News. November 27, 2002. During the broadcast, Kermit and Miss Piggy were interviewed by Today Show weatherman Al Roker to talk about the new balloon. (Not so coincidentally, their new TV-movie, It's a Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie aired on NBC a day later.) In 2008, Kermit appeared live on the Central Park float, and performed the song "I Believe". Sesame Street float A Sesame Street float first appeared in the parade in 1974, with Muppets and cast members waving to the crowd from a set based on the famous 123 Sesame Street brownstone.CTW Products Group newsletter, William Whaley. November 25, 1974. Internal document available to the public at the CTW archives, Box 2. The current Sesame Street float measures 32 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 2 stories tall."Floating Beauty: The 81st Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade Rides Down Broadway on Theatrical Moving Stages", Macy's press release, November 2007. The Sesame Street cast has performed songs in many Parades, including: * 1990: Ernie and Bert walk-around characters sing "Do You Like Me?" * 1997: Cast members sing "Rubber Duckie" * 1998: Cast members sing "Sing" * 1999: Cast members sing "How Do You Do?" * 2000: Cast members sing "Reach Your Hand Up High" * 2001: Cast members sing "A Little Bit" * 2002: American and international Sesame characters sing "We Are All Earthlings" * 2003: Cast members sing "Good Morning World" * 2004: Cast members sing "The Street We Live On" * 2005: Cast members sing "Dancing Shoes" * 2006: Cast members sing "Another Sunny Day" * 2007: Cast members sing "It Feels Good When You Sing a Song" * 2008: Cast members sing "Songs" with pianist Lang Lang In 2002, the Sesame float featured a timely message about peace and universal goodwill, and the American cast was joined by a group of international Sesame Muppets. The international Muppets included Filfil, Nimnim and Khokha from Egypt's Alam Simsim, Zuzu from South Africa's Takalani Sesame, Hu Hu Zhu from China's Zhima Jie, Rumpel and Samson from Germany's Sesamstrasse, Kareem, Dafi and Haneen from the Palestinian Shara'a Simsim, Abelardo and Lola from Mexico's Plaza Sésamo, and Zeliboba from the Russian Ulitsa Sezam. This year, the cast sang "We Are All Earthlings". Several Sesame characters have also appeared in balloon form. Big Bird's balloon debuted in 1989, and was updated in 2001 with a new model. A Super Grover balloon launched in 2003, and was followed by an Abby Cadabby balloon in 2007. Fraggle Rock float A Fraggle Rock float appeared in the Parade in 1983 and 1984 "The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade! 1984", X-entertainment.com. . The float featured Junior Gorg sitting on top, swinging his club on a set based on the Gorgs' garden. Uncle Traveling Matt hid below Junior's line of sight. Below Junior, the float opened out into a lavish Fraggle caves set, where the main characters played instruments and sang while other Fraggles played around them -- including two Fraggles balanced on a seesaw. The Fraggles performed a short version of the "Fraggle Rock Theme". The float was also accompanied by a group of Fraggle walk-around characters. Muppet Appearances at the Macy's Parade Bold text indicates the debut of a new balloon, float or appearance. *1974: Sesame Street float *1975: Sesame Street float *1976: Sesame Street float "Waiting for Bullwinkle and Bird Worthwhile Trial for 2 Children", Lena Williams, The New York Times. November 26, 1976. *1977: Kermit the Frog balloon *1978: Kermit the Frog balloon *1979: The Electric Mayhem bus , new Sesame Street float , Kermit the Frog balloon *1980: Sesame Street float *1981: Kermit the Frog balloon *1982: Kermit the Frog balloon *1983: Fraggle Rock float , Kermit the Frog balloon "Parade's Star Quality Undimmed By Rain or Mickey Mouse Mishap", Maureen Dowd, The New York Times. November 25, 1983. *1984: Fraggle Rock float , Kermit the Frog balloon , Sesame Street car with Oscar, Big Bird, walk-around Ernie, Bert and Cookie Monster *1985: Kermit the Frog balloon *1986: Kermit the Frog balloon *1987: Jim Henson and Kermit accept the Rollie Award , Kermit the Frog balloon *1988: *1989: Big Bird balloon *1990: Kermit and Miss Piggy walk-arounds riding in a Rolls-Royce car , Ernie and Bert walk-arounds sing "Do You Like Me?" , Kermit the Frog balloon , Big Bird balloon , broadcast includes a tribute to Henson *1991: Kermit the Frog balloon *1992: *1993: Big Bird balloon "The 1993 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade!", X-entertainment.com. *1994: *1995: Sesame Street float "Sesame Street nostalgia among teenagers makes pre-school items cool to have and hold", The Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ). February 15, 1996. *1996: Big Bird balloon , Sesame Street float *1997: Sesame Street float *1998: New Sesame Street float "Parade balloons on tighter leash: Wary of wind, teams will keep 'em in line", Tara George, New York Daily News. November 25, 1998., Big Bird balloon "Balloons Reined In, but Paradegoers Rained On", Douglas Martin, The New York Times. November 27, 1998. *1999: Sesame Street float *2000: Big Bird balloon "Winds Relent Just Enough to Let the Parade Balloons Float", Winnie Hu, The New York Times. November 24, 2000., Sesame Street float *2001: New Big Bird balloon , Sesame Street float *2002: New Kermit the Frog balloon , Sesame Street float *2003: Super Grover balloon , Kermit the Frog balloon "Above, Familiar Characters; Below, Their Cheering Fans", Robert D. McFadden, The New York Times. November 28, 2003., Big Bird balloon , Sesame Street float *2004: Kermit the Frog balloon "64 Degrees, 59 Balloons, and One Perfect Thanksgiving Day Parade", Patrick Healy, The New York Times. November 26, 2004., Super Grover balloon , Sesame Street float "No rain on parade - it's pure magic: 2.5 million catch rays and supersized sights", Veronika Belenkaya and Tony Sclafani, New York Daily News. November 26, 2004. *2005: Super Grover balloon "Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade" list of events, JimsDeli NYC Guide. November 24, 2005., Big Bird balloon , 123 Sesame Street float *2006: Super Grover balloon "2006 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade" press kit, Macysinc.com. November 3, 2006., Big Bird balloon , 123 Sesame Street float *2007: Abby Caddaby balloon "2007 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade" press kit, Macysinc.com. October 16, 2007., Kermit the Frog balloon , 123 Sesame Street float *2008: Kermit the Frog rides in the Central Park float and performs "I Believe" , Kermit the Frog balloon "2008 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade" press kit, Macysinc.com. October 29, 2008., Abby Cadabby balloon , 123 Sesame Street float with Lang Lang Merchandise Macy's also carries parade exclusive merchandise every year. Many of those items have featured the Muppets, including a water globe featuring the Big Bird balloon, and plush versions of Grover and Kermit. Gallery Image:Ss_thankgivingparade.jpg|''Sesame Street'' float, 1970s Image:Macyskermitballoon.jpg|Original Kermit the Frog balloon, 1977-2002 Image:Macysfragglefloat2.jpg|''Fraggle Rock'' float, 1984 Image:Macysfragglefloat.jpg|''Fraggle Rock'' float, 1984 Image:Fraggle-walk-arounds.jpg|''Fraggle Rock'' walk-around characters, 1984 Image:Kermit1985balloon.jpg|Kermit the Frog balloon swamped by rain and with a hole in its stomach, 1985 Image:2000bigbird.jpg|Original Big Bird balloon, debuted 1986 Image:Rollieaward.jpg|Jim Henson and Kermit receive the Rollie Award, 1987 Image:1990parade1.jpg|Kermit and Miss Piggy in a Rolls Royce, 1990 Image:1990parade2.jpg|Kermit and Miss Piggy in a Rolls Royce, 1990 Image:Berternieparade.jpg|Bert and Ernie sing "Do You Like Me?", 1990 Image:Kermit1991.jpg|The Kermit balloon suffers a head wound, 1991 Image:Macys-sesamefloat2001.jpg|''Sesame Street'' float, 2001 Image:2004bigbird.jpg|New Big Bird balloon, debuted 2001 Image:Newkermitballoon.jpg|New Kermit the Frog balloon, debuted 2002 Image:76th-macy's-parade.jpg|''Sesame Street'' float with international Muppets, 2002 Image:Macys-supergrover.jpg|Super Grover balloon, debuted 2003 Image:Macys-sesamefloat2006.jpg|''Sesame Street'' float, 2006 Image:Abbyfloat.jpg|Abby Cadabby balloon, 2007 Image:Macys2008b.jpg|''Sesame Street'' float with Lang Lang, 2008 Image:Macys2008a.jpg|''Sesame Street'' float, 2008 Image:Bethcareen 3063961293 6f66e3c3bc o.jpg|Alice Snuffleupagus on the Sesame Street float, 2008 Image:Kermitmacysparade1.jpg|Kermit performs "I Believe", 2008 Image:Kermitmacysparade2.jpg|Kermit performs "I Believe", 2008 Sesame Street characters This is a list of characters (cast, muppets) from Sesame Street who were on the Sesame Street float. *1974: Big Bird *1975: *1976: *1977: *1978: *1979: *1980: *1997: *1998: *1999: *2000: *2001: Big Bird *2002: Regular (US): Big Bird, Elmo, Zoe. International: Filfil, Nimni, Khokha, Zuzu, Hu Hu Zhu, Rumpel, Samson, Kareem, Dafi, Haneen], Abelardo, Lola, Zeliboba. *2003: *2004: *2005: *2006: Abby Caddaby, Big Bird, Elmo, Zoe, Alan. *2007: Abby Caddaby, Big Bird, Elmo, Zoe, Alan. *2008: Abby Caddaby, Alice, Big Bird, Elmo, Zoe, Alan, Bob, Herry, Telly, Baby Bear, Grover, Grundgetta, The Count, Prairie Dawn, Ernie, Bert, Murray Monster, Karina the Ballerina, Rosita, Oscar, Leela, Maria, Susan, Gina, Luis See also * Kermit the Frogtographer * Macy's Kermit Christmas Ornament Sources External links *Official site Category:Live Appearances Category:TV Appearances Category:Thanksgiving Category:Parades